Scars of Arkham
by ForeverFangirl12
Summary: Wally is determined to find out about something from Robins past, but in doing so brings up painful memories for Robin and in turn may ruin their friendship forever.
1. Chapter 1

**_***I finally got around to posting a new story. Might post another one over the summer if I have time. I just wanted to note that the stories that I post happen in not specific order (which is why Aqualad is featured in this one). However, if you would like to place them or read them in any specific order, feel free to do so. Also, yes, we're going to pretend that Arkham City is a thing in the YJ universe for the sake of the story. Hope you enjoy. *** -FF12_**

The team was sparring in the cave. They had not been given a mission by Batman when he came, so they decided to take the night off after their sparring lesson. Wally and Superboy were just finishing up when Batman walked towards the Zeta tube.

"Where are you going?" asked Robin.

"A new mission suddenly came up, I need to head back," replied Batman.

"Need any help, I could come with?" says Robin.

Batman turns and looks at Robin. He pauses. "It's in Arkham City," says Batman.

Robin frowns as he looks at his mentor. He crosses his arms. "Yea you should probably take this one," says Robin.

Batman puts a hand on Robins shoulder then turns toward the zeta tube. Robin just stares until he hears Wally's voice.

"What's in Arkham City?" asks Wally.

"Nothing," says Robin walking past his friends.

"It's clearly not nothing if you're scared," replies Wally.

"I said it's nothing," replies Robin, his voice getting angrier.

"Dude, c'mon just tell us," says Wally.

"I SAID DROP IT, ALRIGHT!" shouts Robin, turning to look at his friend.

Wally stares at him in disbelief. Robin doesn't say anything else. He turns and walks towards his quarters.

"What is up with him," asks Wally.

"I think it's best just to leave it alone," says Kaldur. "It is not wise to open up old wounds."

"He's my best friend," replies Wally. "How can I help him if he doesn't let me in on it?"

"If he wanted too, he would've by now," replies Connor.

"He's right Wally, leave it be," says Megan.

Wally nodded as his friends walked off. But they were crazy if they thought he was just going to stand back and let his friend suffer alone. Wally was determined to figure out what was bothering Robin and nobody was going to stop him.


	2. Chapter 2

Wally was standing in front of the mega screen, when the team, minus Robin, came up behind him. They saw a map of Arkham City pulled up.

"Umm, what is this?" asks Artemis.

"If Robin isn't going to tell me what's bothering him, I'm going to find out myself," says Wally. "And I was hoping you guys would come with me."

"No way!" replies Artemis.

"C'mon, don't you guys want to know what's bothering him?" asks Wally.

"Not if means going behind his back," replies Megan. "What is he going to say when he finds out?"

"Relax, he's not going to find out," says Wally.

"Dude, I'm a detective," says Robin. "I'm going to find out."

Wally jumps. He turns and sees Robin standing behind all of them.

"Dude, seriously, it's freaky how you do that.," says Wally.

"I can't believe you would do this to me Wally," says Robin. "You're my best friend."

"I wouldn't have to do this if you would just tell me what's bothering you," replies Wally.

Robin opens his mouth to say something, but then closes it again.

"I can't," he says.

"Fine, then I'm going to Arkham City," says Wally frustrated. "C'mon guys."

Wally and Robin both turn to look at the team. Everyone is in disbelief. Then Connor speaks up.

"I can't let him go alone Robin," says Connor. "I'm sorry."

The rest of the team follows Wally. They walk past Robin. Megan stops in front of Robin and puts a hand on his shoulder.

"It's safer if we go together," says Megan smiling. She continues to follow Wally.

"Are you coming, or not?" asks Wally looking at Robin.

Robin doesn't respond. He and Wally just look at each other.

"Fine, whatever," says Wally.

Robin watches as they walk away. He flips into the air and pulls out his escrima stick. He lands in front of Wally and the team and the escrima stick stops them in their tracks. Then Robin looks Wally dead in the eyes.

"You'd better hope your plan works," says Robin. "Because I'm not coming to save you…not this time."

Wally doesn't say anything. He just shoves the eskrima stick out of the way and keeps walking. The rest of the team follows. Robin watches as they disappear into the zeta tube


	3. Chapter 3

The team had been gone for hours now. Robin was starting to get worried, but he needed to get his mind off it, he warned them not to go. It wasn't his fault. Robin's communicator starts beeping. He picks it up and sees that it's Wally.

"What do you need?" asks Robin.

"Hello, Bird Boy," replies the voice.

Robin recognize that voice all too well. "Joker," he says.

"Yes, glad we clarified that," says Joker. "Now onto business. You are going to come to Arkham City right now."

"No thanks, I'm good," says Robin.

"Let me rephrase that," says Joker. "You are going to come to Arkham City right now or all of your friends will die."

Robin's eyebrows raise in disbelief. "Guys?" he says.

"That's right" says Joker. "They're all here, Flash boy, Fish boy, Arrow girl, all of them."

"No," says Robin.

"Oh, I almost forgot the best part," says Joker. "Daddy Bats is here too; he tried to come save the kiddies on his own. Thought maybe you'd be with him when I didn't see you with your pathetic team. When I realized you weren't there, I just knew I had to get you to come here and have some fun with Uncle J. Would you like to say hi? You can speak Batman."

There was a grunt from the other end of the phone. "Ro-Robin," says Batman.

Robin recognized Bruce's voice. "Batman, are you-"

"Sorry, times up," interrupts Joker. "Come right now or I will start picking them off one-by-one. Oh and if you contact the rest of the Super Friends, or the cops or anyone, I will know."

Joker fires an gun and Robin hears Megan scream, followed by Jokers laugh. The line then goes dead.


	4. Chapter 4

Robin was pacing around the cave. He didn't have much time. He couldn't go back there, he wouldn't. But Batman, his friends, all of these thoughts were running through Robins head.

He should've tried harder to stop them, all of them. Robin knows Arkham City like the back of his hand. But it's too hard to navigate for someone who hasn't studied it like he has. He should've gone with them, it would've been safer, but he didn't. He knew they weren't prepared for Arkham City. And what about Batman, he couldn't leave him helpless. If the situation was reversed, Batman wouldn't hesitate for a second. But Batman knows how painful of a past Arkham City holds for Robin. He didn't mean it when he said he wasn't going to save them. He was just hoping it would convince them not to go, that maybe he wouldn't have to worry about saving them at all. Robin had made up his mind. He was going to save Batman and his friends. He was going to Arkham City.


	5. Chapter 5

Robin arrived in Arkham City. It looked the same as it was before, dark, gloomy, nothing but chaos and ruin. Robin was trying to figure out where Joker was keeping everyone. There were so many abandoned places in Arkham City, they could be anywhere. Then he remembered the Steel Mill, also home to Jokers Funland in the Industrial District. It was the perfect place to keep anyone hostage and do other things, but Robin didn't want to think about that. He hoped his instinct was right.

Robin swung to the front of the building. There was a giant Joker face on the outside, but there was no sign of anyone. Robin started to walk away, when suddenly, the mouth of the giant Joker face opened. He was hesitant, but he entered through it. He walked further and found his friends strung up side by side, their hands chained to the platform above. Batman was with them. They were high in the air. There was a table and two chairs in front of them.

"Robin," says Wally. "You came…I thought you-"

"KF, Zip It," says Robin through clenched teeth.

Robin was about to retrieve something from his utility belt when Jokers voice came over a speaker.

"Don't even think about it, boy blunder" says Joker. He then walked out from the shadows and stretched out his hand. "Hand it over like a good little bird." Robin takes off his utility belt and hands it to Joker. The Joker then gesture to one of the chairs, Robin sits. Joker then chains Robin's hands in front of him.

"We're going to play some games tonight," explains Joker. "I have a whole bunch that I think are going to be super fun. But we need more players. Who should be our next contestant? I know how about the speedster."

The Joker pulls out a remote and pushes a button. Wally gets lowered to the ground, his hands still chained in front of him. He has two giant gashes on his legs. Joker had cut him deep. He looked around at the rest of the team and Batman. They were all beaten and bruised. The Joker walked over to Wally and pulled him by the chains over to the other chair so that he was sitting across from Robin.

"Robin, I-" Wally's head whipped to the side as he was slapped by Joker. Robin flinched as he did so.

"I didn't say you could talk," says Joker. "I'm trying to explain the rules."

The Joker then took out a gun. He placed a bullet into one of the five holes and spun it. He then placed the gun in the center of the table.

"Here's how the first game works," explains Joker. "This game is called Joker Roulette. You will each take a turn pointing the gun at each other until it fires. Simple right?"

"No, I won't," says Wally.

"Ha ha ha, that's the next rule Flash Boy," explains Joker. "If you refuse to play my games, one of your other friends die. Got it."

Robin and Wally just sat there in silence. They looked at each other. Neither of them wanted to go first. Joker pushed another button on the remote and something started to electrocute Artemis. They looked around as their friend screamed in pain, helpless.

"Alright, stop!" shouts Wally. He reached for the gun and picked it up. He aimed it at Robin's shoulder. Wally's finger was on the trigger, but he hesitated to pull it. The Joker pushed the button again and Artemis screamed in pain.

"You can stop this Flash boy," says Joker, getting close to Wally's face. "All you have to do is pull the trigger."

Wally's face was dripping in sweat. Robin at least had a chance, but did Wally want to take that chance? Artemis' screams echoed throughout the building. Wally screamed as he pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. The Joker laughed and jumped up and down. Wally put the gun back on the table as soon as he could. His hands were shaking.

"Hoo hoo, that was intense," laughs Joker. "Your turn bird brain."

Robin picked up the gun. He looked Wally in the eye. Wally nodded to give Robin the ok. Robin also aimed for Wally's shoulder. He pulled the trigger. Nothing. Their chances were diminishing, and soon luck would run out for one of them. Robin put the gun down. It was Wally's turn again. He picked up the gun and aimed for Robin's arm. The Joker watched intently as Wally pulled the trigger and the bullet hit Robins arm. Robin screamed in agony. Wally was frozen stiff. He had just shot his best friend. Wally threw the gun away and watched as Robin held his arm, wincing, his hands covered in blood.

Joker started to clap. "Wasn't that fun everybody?" asks Joker.

"YOU'RE A LUNATIC!" shouts Wally.

"I know," says Joker smiling. "Onto the next game."


	6. Chapter 6

Joker draged Wally back over to where he was before and strung him up. Next he lowered Batman. Batman was sitting across from Robin. They both looked at each other.

"Are you alright?" mouths Batman to Robin so Joker couldn't hear.

Robin nodded and gave him a weak smile.

"This next game is a game of Chance," says Joker. He then pulled out a knife. He walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a blowtorch. He lit the knife on fire with the blowtorch. He then put a dice on the table.

"You're both going to roll the dice," says Joker. "And whoever rolls the lowest number loses. And I don't think I have to remind you what happens if you refuse."

Joker pushed another button and kryptonite came out of a machine next to Superboy. They pierced his sides. Robin picked up the dice, he rolled a five. The Joker was watching intently as Batman picked up the dice. He rolled it and it stops on the table. He rolled a four. A big smile crossed Joker's face.

"Such a shame," says Joker. He then plunges the knife into Batman's hand. Robin can't bear to watch as Batman's hand is steaming and the skin around the knife starts to peal. Joker then yanks the knife back out.

"Isn't this fun?" says Joker. "You know this is the same knife I used the last time you were here bird boy."

Robins head shot up and he gave Joker his best batglare. The team all had curious looks on their faces. Wally especially. Joker noticed this.

"Oh you haven't told them," says Joker. "You really should tell them the story, it's a killer."

Joker laughs at himself, before he can say anything else Robin pounces onto Joker. The remote flies out of his hand. He doesn't care that his hands are chained. Robin just keeps hitting. With all of the force he has. Joker catches his hand and lifts him up by the wrist. Joker looks Robin in the eye.

"That was a mistake," says Joker angrily. "Tell me boy blunder, did it scar?"

Batman starts to charge towards the Joker. He throws Robin into Batman and they crash into each other.

"You know," say Joker. "I was really surprised our last encounter didn't kill you. Maybe we should try it again. The other side this time.

Joker grabs the knife and starts to walk towards Robin.

"NO!" shouts Robin.

Before Joker can strike, he is knocked to the ground unconscious. Wally is standing behind him with a steel pipe. Joker had been distracted enough for Wally to phase through the chains. And his super healing had finally cure the gashes in his legs. Batman picked up the Jokers remote. He lowered the rest of the team and stumbled over to the Joker. He put the bat cuffs on. Wally freed the rest of the team. He then looked at Robin, who was standing there shaking. Wally walked over to him.

"Robin, I…I'm sorry. So sorry," he says. Robin doesn't say anything. He just stands there. He finally locks eyes with Wally.

"Batman promised me that I would never have to come back here," he says looking Wally straight in the eyes. "And you made him break that promise."

Wally had sadness in his eyes. He was trying to figure out what to say, but before he could Robin walks away and doesn't look back.


	7. Chapter 7

It had already been a week since the mission to Arkham City and Wally hadn't seen Robin since. He wasn't coming to the cave anymore. He wasn't answering any of Wally's calls or text. He even tried messaging him on Facebook. The messages hadn't even been read. Every time Batman came to the cave to check on the team, Wally would ask about Robin. Batman gave him the same answer every time.

"He's healing, let him rest," says Batman.

Dick was sitting on his bed at Wayne Manor. He was way behind on his assignments and since he wasn't going anywhere for a while, he decided this was the perfect time to catch up. He was halfway through when there was a ruckus coming from the hallway. Dick could hear voices getting louder as they got closer to the door. His door got thrown open and Alfred was blocking the doorway.

"I already told you that master Dick does not want any visitors at the moment," says Alfred. "And I can assure you that he especially does not want to see you."

"C'mon Jeeves, let me through, just for a minute" says Wally. Dick heard the voice of his best friend outside his door. Alfred was preventing Wally from coming through.

"Alfred, it's ok," says Dick. "Thank You."

"Humph," snivels Alfred, straightening his jacket and stepping out of the way. He shuts the door after Wally steps in. Wally looks at Dick and smiles. Dick doesn't return his gaze.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" asks Wally. Dick doesn't say anything; he just sits on his bed in silence. Wally walks over and sits next to him.

"I get that you don't want to talk to me," says Wally. "So you don't have too, just listen and I'll talk. I don't know what's bothering you, and I know I was wrong to go behind your back and pry into your business when it wasn't my place. I'm sorry, but I would do it again because you're my best friend and when you're hurting, I'm hurting. You don't have to tell me the story now, you can tell me when you're ready, and when you are, I'll listen because that's what best friends do. They're there for each other through hard times. And you can stay mad at me for as long as you want but that's never going to change. Not on my watch."

Wally looks at Dick, who just stares back. Wally gets up and he's heading for the door, but Robin speaks before Wally reaches for the handle.

"It was our first mission in Arkham City," starts Dick.

"What?" replies Wally turning to his friend.

"You wanted the story," says Dick. "So here it is."

Wally walks back over to Dicks bed and sits down.


	8. Chapter 8

"Batman wanted me to stay behind, but I refused to let him go alone," says Robin. "Finally, he said I could come with him as long as I stayed by his side and obeyed exactly what he said. Joker had taken fifty-two people hostage in Arkham City, Batman and I were only able to save fifteen."

"Woah," says Wally. "I can understand why you would be traumatized by that."

"Oh, that wasn't the reason it was traumatizing," says Robin.

Robin continued. "After we got the fifteen people out of the area, we went back to look for survivors. We were ambushed by a group of villains, orchestrated by Joker of course. We were knocked out cold. We woke up later in a dark room, lit by a single lightbulb. We had no idea where we were, but we couldn't move. Batman and I were strapped to operating tables. Joker came out wearing a surgeon's mask and had a knife. And then I felt him slice me open. Batman begged him to stop but he wouldn't. He performed surgery on me while I was awake. I felt everything. I felt him digging around inside me, yanking my guts, and I felt it as he broke my ribs with his bare hands. I must have passed out from all the blood loss, because I don't remember how we even escaped. All I remember is waking up in the hospital three days later, with this."

Dick lifted his shirt and down the side of his body was a giant vertical scar where Joker had made the incision. Wally looked at it in disbelief. Dick rolled his shirt back down. He looked at Wally.

"To this day, I'm one of the few people who has been to Arkham City and has lived to tell the tale," says Dick. "So there, now you know."

Dick laid back on his pillow. Wally moved closer to him.

"Thanks for telling me," says Wally. "I'm here for you, you know that right?"

"Of course I do," says Dick.

"So we're good, you forgive me?" asks Wally.

"No," replies Dick.

"What, what do you mean?" asks Wally.

"We're officially on speaking terms again," explains Dick. "But forgiving you, that's going to take some time."

"How much time?" asks Wally.

"As much as I need," replies Dick.

Wally nods in agreement to Robin. He knew it wasn't going to be easy for Robin to forgive him, so he was willing to wait however long it might take.


	9. Chapter 9

_One Month Later…_

Robin and Kid Flash were sitting on top of a building somewhere on a deserted island. The team had been sent on a recon mission. They had split into pairs to observe different parts of the area. Robin and Wally were supposed to be keeping watch but they had ended up just laughing the whole time instead because they had been sitting for hours and nothing had happened.

"So Flash and I…," says Wally laughing. "Here we are just B-lining it through downtown Central City, and mind you this is the first time I'd ever fought Reverse Flash as a sidekick. So we're gaining on him right?"

"Yeeesss…" says Robin with a huge grin.

"And out of the corner of my eye, I see this pretty girl walking down the street," explains Wally.

"Oh no," laughs Robin.

"Oh yes," says Wally. "So, I turn my head for one second and SMACK, right into a flagpole."

"Wait, wait?" asks Robin. "That's how he got away?"

"Uh huh," replies Wally smiling. "Barry didn't talk to me for a week after that."

Robin laughs. "Well I would imagine."

Robin and Wally hadn't laughed like this in a long time. They had started to become real friends again over the past month. Robin took a quick glance over at his friend.

"Hey, Wally," says Robin.

"Yea," replies Wally.

"I've been thinking," starts Robin. "And I just wanted to say that…I f—BOOOOOMMM!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Wally woke up on the ground. His sides were aching, he looked around him. The whole area was in flames. The building they were just on was on fire. Wally frantically searched for Robin and he saw him lying on the ground a few feet away.

"Wally," said Robin through clenched teeth.

Wally ran closer and saw that there was a piece of debris that had been wedge into Robins side. He was bleeding badly and his breaths were short.

"Oh no no no," saaid Wally worriedly as he bent down to put pressure on the wound.

"GUYS ROBIN IS DOWN, THIS IS AN EMERGENCY, COME QUICK!" yelled Wally into his communicator. "Ok Robin, you're going to be fine, ok, I need you to stay with me."

Wally could see Robin was struggling to hold on. His eyes were beginning to close.

"No, hey," says Wally putting more pressure on the wound. "You are not going out like this, ok, I won't let you. Stay with me, just hold on, please."

The team arrived shortly and reinforcements were called. Robin was rushed to the nearest hospital. They rushed in with Robin on the gurney and the oxygen mask over his face. Wally didn't leave his side the whole time, until he was stopped.

"I'm sorry son, you can't come in here," said the doctor stopping Wally in his tracks.

Wally watched as they rushed Robin into intensive care. He put his hands on his head and had tears in his eyes. He sat in one of the chairs in the hallway and started sobbing into his hands. Wally felt someone peering over him. He lifted his head to see Batman standing over him. Wally spoke up.

"I told him I would always be there for him," sniffles Wally.

"What?" says Batman

"Robin," replies Wally. "I told him I'd be there through all the hard times and now he's injured because of me, because I wasn't paying attention. I always screw everything up. How can I expect him to forgive me when all I do is screw him over?"

"You stopped the bleeding enough for him to get here," replies Batman. "You might have saved his life." Batman sits down next to Wally. "Look, the incident at Arkham City was hard for all of us, and I know you're sorry and Robin knows it too. And I know that you're afraid that Robin will never forgive you. But you can't keep trying to make him forgive you before he's ready. When you try to force it, that's when you screw up," explains Batman. "You just need to slow it down and stay focused."

Wally looks at Batman. He understood what he was trying to say.

"If it's any consolation," says Batman. "He will forgive you.

"How do you know?" asked Wally.

"We all have demons in our past and it's hard to face them, but the people in our lives, the ones who care about us, that's where we find our strength."

Batman was right. Wally smiled and looked up at him.

"So be patient, ok," says Batman.

"Yes sir," replies Wally smiling.

Batman walks away and leaves Wally alone to think.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Wally had gone to clean himself up. Robin had been in surgery for over an hour before he got out. The doctor said he was going to be ok. He was asleep right now but the doctor said he could still go into the room. Wally walked quietly into the room and saw his friend sleeping. He sat down on the chair next to the bed, and took Robin's hand. Wally had dozed off when he felt his hand being squeezed. He woke up to see Robin looking at him.

"Dude, you have no idea how happy I am to see you," says Wally with a sigh of relief.

"KF," says Robin.

"Yea, what is it?" replies Wally.

"What I was going to say back there," starts Robin. "Before I was rudely interrupted…, was that I forgive you."

Wally smiles and takes squeezes robin's hand back. He looks at him and smiles.

"I know," replies Wally with a sigh of relief. "I know."


End file.
